A former postmaster has been jailed for two years after stealing more than £56,000 from customers' benefit books at Didcot Post Office.

Jasvinder Phanasan, 35, was found guilty of 15 charges of theft between December 31, 2003, and February 17, 2005, by a jury at Oxford Crown Court.

Phanasan, of Springfield Road, Walmley, in the West Midlands, cashed foils from pensioners' allowance books which had previously been reported missing, and later stopped at the Broadway branch. He had denied all the charges.

A spokesman for the Post Office said: "Subpostmasters are in a unique position of trust and it is always disappointing when that trust is breached.

"The overwhelming majority of people who work in our branch network are professional, honest and provide the highest standards of service possible.

"Post Office Ltd has many systems in place to protect its assets and those of our customers.

"We take a zero-tolerance policy to the rare incidents of dishonesty and always seek to prosecute those responsible, looking to the courts to pass sentences to deter others."